Patience Unchained

Much as the heart speaks of love in stillness,

The mind must hang on said silence with heed

And let patience make vivid that speechlessness

Lest lips unleash feelings loved ones misread.

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Patience Unchained

Live Free

Don't just loathe dictates,

Be free, like the river wild--

Kiss caution good bye!

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Tesoro Escondido

(Haw River Natural Area Trail near Bynum North Carolina)

Breathless Interlude

Winter awakens with well timed prelude.

Sunlit foretaste of rawness reigns supreme,

Awes heart and soul in breathless interlude

Where lambent hoarfrost makes plain sublime theme.

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Breathless Interlude

(Cooper's Cove on Jordan Lake NC)

Rebirth Of Liberty

Pessimism driven by the darker side of human nature increasingly weighs down hearts and turns our way of life topsy-turvy. Stand fast against wrongdoing, reach for and find solace in such fundamental truths as trust in God, family values and a belief in the basic goodness of our sweet land of liberty…let freedom ring!

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Rebirth Of Liberty

(Front porch flag display in Powell Place, Pittsboro NC)

Twilight Ruminations

Life stokes reckless itches 

Till twilight knocks subtly—

Lays bare that regrets burden heart.

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Ilija (Self-portrait)

Frost Giants

Last night Frost Giants of Norse mythology breached the boundaries of their icy Jotunheim realm and made an overnight incursion into the eastern reaches of the Piedmont Plateau. By daybreak nothing but ground frost and lingering shadows mark their passage homeward down favored escape routes across meadows and woodland clearings. Their raw breath lingers on whispers of ominous tidings—beware, Winter’s knocking.

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Frost Giants

Eternal Question

Some hold the soul to be without beginning

And furthermore as true it has no end.

Others believe God, as divine wellspring,

Creates each new soul for time without end.

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Without Beginning Or End

Days Of Old Ablaze

Pittsboro Historic District architecture puts on quite a show wrapped in autumn regalia, while basking in two days of surprising albeit welcome 80ºF temperatures. The Hall-London House was built c.1836 by Dr Isaac Hall, who resettled from Scotland Neck, North Carolina. The Federal/Greek Revival style dwelling was later occupied by Henry London and family from 1880-1918. The latter was an attorney, state senator and founder-publisher of the Chatham Record newspaper…in print since 1878.

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Days Of Old Ablaze

Hall-London House, c. 1836

Misgivings

Misgivings about the future are a never-ending scourge, until you take that fateful first step onward…come what may…and discover the worrisome consequences are in fact building blocks for success, self-confidence and wisdom about life.

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Misgivings

(Folk art owl caricature, unknown artist)

Ordered Chaos - The Breath Of Life

Soul yearns for order

Mind prefers flights of fancy

Heart goes with the flow

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Ordered Chaos

Smorgasbord

Mists Of Life

Daybreak brume bodes change

As fall wanes with telltale clues,

Though mists of life veil truth.

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Mists Of Life

Harmony Everlasting

Life’s course begs bold pace

Time crawls like long-lived river

Harmony brings peace

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Everlasting Harmony

(Haw River near Bynum North Carolina USA)

Noble Silence

Inner silence inspires quietude,
A stillness of heart which makes life more whole
And grants true knowledge of infinitude
By noble union of body, mind and soul.

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Noble Silence

(Red-Shouldered Hawk near Pittsboro NC USA)

Summer's Demise

Give summer leave to steal away with grace

Amid nostalgia etched on mortal heart.

Breathe easy, look at autumn’s mellow face,

Not as summer’s demise, but a work of art.

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Summer's Demise

Autumn Reprise

Chilled autumn airs marked by nary a breeze,

Loose acorn showers from oak canopies.

For wildlife said rhythms hold cherished reprise

Of divine bounty, before the first freeze.

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Autumn Reprise

(Old Rock Spring Cemetery Church, Pittsboro NC USA)

Rocky Serenity

Turmoil plagues hearts, yet

Calm sweeps rocky peace of mind

When autumn hush lulls chaos.

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Rocky Serenity

(Haw River near Bynum NC)

Autumn Interlude

A soul worse for wear longs for breathing space,

While carefree summer days fade in whispers.

What balm can soothe this blessed hiding place

Better than autumn’s dance beside rivers?

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Misty Interlude

(Haw River near Bynum NC)

Free Speech - The Divine Light

Freedom of speech in streams of consciousness

Comes to pass when heart, mind and soul cast out

Crushing fear of rebuke or consequence

And affirm power of choice day in day out.

Discourse thrives when free will’s radiance,

Akin primordial glow in woodland dawn,

Enlightens darkness cast by man’s ignorance

And thus endures as freedom’s unique spawn.

In truth, tree colonnades bathed in divine light

Hearten innermost thoughts, feelings and woes

And in short order their stately theme makes right

Grim notions that free speech draws mortal blows.

Judge not free speech as disobedience

Instead of heaven-sent experience.

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Primordial Light

Autumn Knocking

Offbeat rhythms reign

Heart bids farewell to summer

Autumn knocks—listen

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Different Drummer

Autumn Overture

Summer swelter cedes dominion, at last,
To autumn frame of mind with song and dance
And gladly ushers out Dog Days of August
With flashy hues in airy dalliance.

© Ilija Lukić 2022

Autumn Song And Dance